The presentation I gave was entitled “Better Photography for Enhancing Your Online Presence,” and in it I discussed the importance of using quality photography to brand and market in a number of industries that the attendees, mostly from across the Middle East, represented.

According to the IOETI organizers these industries included:

Corporate, Regional and Property-level Hoteliers

Provincials, Regional and Municipal Tourism Marketing Organizations

Attractions

Convention and Trade Show Venues

Transportation Companies, including Airlines

Online Travel Marketers and Enablers

Marketing, Public Relations and Advertising Companies

Tourism Sales and Marketing Professionals

Tourism Industry Suppliers

Travel Bloggers

Travel writers

Social Media Specialists

PR Specialists

That’s a wide range of attendees, but I’m confident that my presentation was beneficial to each industry in some way, and the response was all good.

We were greeted with big smiles and "Welcome to Egypt!" everywhere we went.

So, back to the question: Is it safe to travel to Egypt?

Well, I certainly think so, as I had the most incredible experience and enjoyed each and every minute of my stay. At one point, Memphis Tours, our host tour company, took myself and 7 other presenters on a day trip to Alexandria, an iconic city stuck in time and positioned on the Nile delta, in the northern part of Egypt on the clear blue Mediterranean Sea.

I’d fallen in love with the people of Alexandria just over a year ago when I led a photo tour with twelve participants to various parts of this amazing country, which also included a Nile Rivercruise from Aswan to Luxor, so I was anxious to return.

Please don’t get me wrong, everything is not perfect in Egypt. Over the past year there has been horrific violence in parts of the country, from beatings to actual killings, but these are concentrated in very small parts of the country, and only in select cities, and it’s my understanding that no tourists have been injured or killed at any time over this period. Normal precautions and common sense should always be in the forefront of any traveler’s mind. However, just as the Occupy Wall Street movement didn’t discourage the vast majority of travelers to visit the many other parts of New York City, and the United States in general, these hot spots shouldn’t keep interested travelers from enjoying a country rich in history and home to some of the most welcoming and friendly people I’ve encountered in my many years of traveling the globe.

FOR FURTHER READING AND ADDITIONAL PHOTOS

Click to read article.

For more in-depth information on my experience complete with additional photos from Alexandria, please see this article I recently posted on the Travel Photographers Network, a website devoted to like-minded travelers where I’m beginning to be a regular contributor.